RUBEN MARTIN
DE LUCAS
From Spain. Lives and works in Madrid.
ICEBERG NATIONS
ON THE ARTIFICIAL AND LIQUID NATURE OF THE CONCEPT OF NATION No nation exists in a physical way, that is, as an objective entity. Its intangible nature is held as a mental construction present only in the collective imagination. However, all war, all state violence and all forms of government are based on the concept of nation. Through performative actions, several icebergs are boarded, to equip them with nationality and flag. The viewer is invited to question the validity of terms such as country, nation and nationalism, evidencing the abstract and temporal nature of constructs that, although lacking solidity, are sources of continuous tension. This project was made in Greenland, during June 2018 by the Spanish artist Rubén Martín de Lucas and his team: Fernando Martín Borlán, cinematographer, and Hilo Moreno, an experimented polar guide. Greenland was chosen because of its very ancient glaciers. Icebergs coming from these glaciers are composed of ice that can easily be 20 or 30 thousand years old. Planting a flag on them when they are ready to dilute is a powerful metaphor. “Iceberg Nations” has also an 11 channel video installation, a manifesto-book, and a short documentary film. This project belongs to STUPID BORDERS, a set of conceptual projects that questions the idea of “nation” and points at the strange feeling of possession that man exerts towards the Earth, an entity which transcends us in age.
